Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some of the questions AvSuper is frequently asked by members and prospective members.

Questions – General

Check your last statement or call us on 1300 128 751.

Go to the login page of AOL (AvSuper Online) and click ‘forgotten your password’. We will email you with a link which gives you temporary access so you can reset your password to one you will remember easily.

If you have been locked out of your account because of too many incorrect logins, please contact us for help.

Download and read the Guide to AvSuper membership (PDS) to find out about our general membership. Then complete the AvSuper Membership Application and return it to us with your initial contribution. Call AvSuper on 1300 128 751 if you still have queries after reading the document.

Yes, and you can even arrange it online! No fee is charged by AvSuper for such transfers, however, your may need to check with the other fund whether you will lose any benefits (such as insurance arrangements) by making the transfer. Please refer to our transferring to AvSuper page for details.

When the money is received it goes into the accumulation section of the Fund and accrues interest according to the investment choice you have made, or at the rate applicable to the Growth (MySuper) option if you haven’t made a choice.

Our Family law and superannuation fact sheet briefly describes the process which you need to follow to obtain the necessary information. In most cases, AvSuper does not charge for providing the information.

If you are a defined benefit member, it is advisable to obtain a valuation of your benefit as well. It is likely that the Family Court will require this information. Your legal adviser can normally arrange this. We can provide a valuation for a fee of $250.

If you decide to split your superannuation as part of the settlement, there is a charge of $410 – $205 is deducted from the account balance of each party at the time the benefit is split.

Any queries on Family Law issues can be directed to us on (02) 6109 6888 or 1300 128 751.

Since 1 July 2017, most AvSuper members (excluding defined benefit and css members) may be able to claim a tax deduction for personal contributions up to certain limits. For full eligibility and claim information, please refer to our tax deduction fact sheet.

A tax offset may also be available for contributions made for a spouse within certain limits.

Remember that for tax concessions to be claimed for a contribution, it must be in our bank account by 30 June of that financial year. Don’t leave the contribution until the last minute or you may miss out on the deduction!

No. When you are eligible to withdraw your super, you can leave it in AvSuper, take it as a lump sum or purchase an AvSuper retirement income stream, as described in the income stream section of our website.

An after tax contribution (also known as a non-concessional contribution) is one you have made from your net salary. Your gross salary will have been taxed at the appropriate rate and your nominated contribution will then have been deducted from what is left.

As you have already been fully taxed on this money it will not be taxed again by the superannuation system, either on entry or exit. Any earnings on it will however be subject to taxation in the Fund and assessable for taxation purposes on exit. It is considered a personal contribution for purposes of attracting a Government co-contribution, providing other criteria are met.

A before tax or salary sacrifice contribution (also known as a concessional contribution) is one taken from your gross salary. This option is only available if your employer agrees to it.

The chosen contribution is taken from your gross salary and you are only taxed on what is left. A contribution made in this way is classed as an employer contribution. 15% tax is deducted from the contribution when we receive it and earnings on it will be taxed. It is not considered a personal contribution to qualify for the Government co-contribution.

Salary sacrifice contributions are classed as concessional contributions for contribution limit purposes. Since 1 July 2009 salary sacrifice contributions have been included as assessable income for the purposes of determining your eligibility for the Government co-contribution.

Please refer to our Understanding contribution limits fact sheet to find out how much you can contribute each year without attracting additional tax.

Anyone aged between 18 and 67 can contribute to superannuation and in some cases those under 18 may also contribute if they are working. Contributions can also be paid by the employers of these people. Once you reach age 67, restrictions are placed on personal and employer contributions, as explained in the table below.

An award contribution is one required to be paid to an employee under an industrial award.

Age Group Superannuation Guarantee employer contribution Award employer contributions Voluntary employer contributions (including member salary sacrifice contributions) Member Contributions
67-69 Yes Yes Only if employee has worked at least 40 hours in not more than 30 consecutive days in the financial year Only if contributor has worked at least 40 hours in not more than 30 consecutive days in the financial year
70-74 Yes Yes Only if employee has worked at least 40 hours in not more than 30 consecutive days in the financial year Only if the employee has worked at least 40 hours in not more than 30 consecutive days in the financial year
75 on Yes Yes No No

Since 1 July 2016, employers must pay a minimum amount of super into a complying super fund for their Norfolk Island resident employees. The superannuation guarantee (SG) for Norfolk Island residents commenced at a rate of 1% of employee earnings for work performed on Norfolk Island, and increases annually over twelve years. The rate is 5% for 2020-21.

The Australian Taxation Office website has more information about the changing SG rates for employees and employers on Norfolk Island.

Yes, you can stay with AvSuper regardless of your age or working status. Once you reach preservation age, you may choose to move your money into an income stream.

Between 1 January 2009 and 30 June 2017, AvSuper reimbursed contributions tax to eligible member accounts when the money was paid to a dependant as a death benefit; this is called anti-detriment and is calculated in accordance with an ATO formula defined in tax legislation. Updated legislation prevents us from paying this from 1 July 2019, regardless of the date of death.

AvSuper has various licenses and registrations as follows:

  • ABN 84 42-1 446 069
  • AFSL 239078
  • RSEL No. L0000147
  • RSE No. R1000153
  • USI 84421446069001
  • MySuper identifier 84421446069940

AvSuper does not have a Superannuation Product Identification Number (SPIN) (as these are not mandatory).

Non-material changes are those which are not significant enough to require a new product Disclosure Statement being issued. That is, they are changes which would not have a large impact on members.

Any non-material changes made by AvSuper are listed on our website until a new PDS is produced.

Questions – Defined Benefit Members

A defined benefit is where the amount of your end benefit is determined by a formula based on your final average salary and your accrued benefit multiple. The level of salary increase you receive will therefore have a substantial impact on your retirement benefit. The size of the multiple will depend on the period of time you have been in the scheme and the amount you have personally contributed.

Please read our Defined Benefit members’ guide for full details.

The earning rate of the fund has no bearing on the overall size of your benefit and your employer bears the investment risk. If returns are high the employer is not required to contribute as much to fund the benefit. However, if returns are low then the employer will have to contribute more to AvSuper.

Yes if you are an employee of Airservices Australia, but not if you are a CASA employee. Please refer to the document AvSuper Defined Benefit Member Guide for further information.

Generally yes. Airservices employees who transfer to or from CASA (ie without a break or other employment in between) may be considered as ongoing Corporate defined benefit members and may be able to keep their defined benefit arrangements as if no change in employment had occurred. Approval may be required from your employer and/or AvSuper.

The salary we use is provided to us by your employer. You need, therefore, to approach your employer with any queries regarding the salary we are using.

The salary used to determine your final average salary is always the full-time salary. Your part-time service will be reflected by a slow down in the growth of your multiple. For example, a full-time member might accrue 10% of FAS for each year of service. If that member worked part-time performing half the required hours for a year, they would accrue only 5% of FAS.

Taking leave on reduced pay has no effect on your FAS or your rate of benefit accrual.

Generally, you will continue to accrue the normal benefit for the first 12 weeks (84 days) of any period of leave without pay, and you will also have to continue any contributions you have chosen to make yourself. After 12 weeks you will cease to contribute and accrue benefits. If you do not want to personally contribute for the first 12 weeks simply complete a Change of Contributions form and submit it to your payroll area before the payday on which you want your contributions to cease.

Please note that changing your contribution rate may effect your eligibility for grandfathering provisions under the contribution cap rules. Please see our Understanding contribution limits for further information.

For periods of approved unpaid parental, study and sick leave you will continue to accrue benefits and be expected to pay any contributions you have chosen to make, unless you request otherwise.

No. In the defined benefit scheme the investment return has no impact on your end benefit. Your employer bears the investment risk.

If you also have an accumulation (voluntary) account with AvSuper, you may choose between a range of options for the investment of this money and there is no fee for changing this choice! Information on the options and on investment choice are included in our Member Investment Choice (MIC) Guide.

If you don’t make an investment choice for your accumulation account, your money will be invested in the Growth (MySuper) option.

Between 20 August 1996 and 30 June 2005, the Government applied a tax surcharge to employer contributions made for higher income earners.

As AvSuper paid the surcharge on defined benefit members’ behalf, you may have a debt to the Fund. Interest is applied to this debt at the earning rate of the defined benefit portfolio, and the debt is fully recovered by AvSuper from your account balance when your benefit becomes payable.

Any outstanding surcharge amount is listed on your annual member statement.

You can clear your debt (in part or in full) using your accumulation account, if you have one. Simply write to us and tell us how much to withdraw from your account to cover the debt.

If you don’t have an accumulation account and want to pay off your debt, please contact us to discuss how this can be arranged.

The administration costs for defined benefit members are met by the employer.

If you also have an accumulation account, you need to refer to the fees and charges section of the AvSuper Corporate Product Disclosure Statement.

Questions – Accumulation (Corporate and Public Offer) Members

Your employer will make contributions generally based on the actual base salary you receive each pay period, including allowances. Your contributions are calculated by your employer and any queries you have, such as what allowances are actually included, should be referred to your pay office.

Your employer superannuation contributions are a percentage of your salary and recognised allowances you receive in a pay period. Therefore if you receive no pay you will not be entitled to any employer contributions or any salary sacrifice or after-tax contributions made via your employer. If you receive only part of your normal pay, you will receive only part of your normal contributions for that period.

Yes, you may choose between a range of AvSuper investment options and you can spread your investments across the options if you wish. You can also choose to have your existing balance invested differently to your future contributions. You may vary your options weekly and there is no charge for doing so. A description of the options and some points for you to consider are included in the the Member Investment Choice (MIC) Guide . If you wish to exercise investment choice simply log into AOL (AvSuper Online) or complete the Nominate / switch investment options form and forward it to the address shown on the form.

If you don’t make an investment choice, your money will be invested in the Growth (MySuper) option by default.

There are fees for the administration and investment costs associated with your account. Some of these are deducted weekly from your account balance and others are taken into account in the calculation of unit prices. A full description of the fees payable, how they are applied and examples of this are included in the Fees and Charges section of the relevant Product Disclosure Statement.

If you have AvSuper insurance cover, fees will also be deducted from your account each month – please refer to our insurance guide for details.

Unitisation is similar to buying and selling stocks, with frequent price changes. Units are allocated to you when we receive a contribution or rollover for you. Your unit holding decreases when you make a withdrawal, receive an income stream payment, leave AvSuper or we deduct fees, taxes and insurance fees.

The allocation price is based on that day’s unit price so even regular contributions often convert to a different number of units. For members, the buying and selling price is the same. We take out fees and any applicable tax before setting unit prices. You can find current and historical unit prices in graph and tabular form.

AvSuper’s accumulation and income stream investments are unitised. AvSuper’s defined benefit accounts are based on a multiple of your final average salary (FAS) and are not unitised.